Guarded
by hardly-noticeable
Summary: Just a little fic I had to get out of my head. Pairings: Ruby/Luke, Mina/Rupert. T but slightly M. Mostly Mina/Rupert. Please R


Mina Harker did not like getting out of bed in the morning. She was a morning person, yes, but she always had a hard time rising from her king-sized cloud of a bed. Often she had to remind herself of everything on her agenda just to make herself rise. On the weekends though, she had to be pulled from bed by Rupert Galvin if she was needed. She flat out refused to get out of bed on the weekends. And this one was no different. It was Saturday, she had a premiere party, concert, and CD signing to attend, but she couldn't bring herself to get out of bed no matter how many times she reminded herself of her responsibilities. Rupert just _had_ to get her that therapeutic mattress.

She rolled onto her side to avoid looking at the clock and pulled the blanket over her head to block out the light. But before she could fall back to sleep though, she heard the door open and Galvin's heavy footsteps coming towards the bed. He pulled away the blanket from her head and leaned over her, giving her cheek a kiss. "Good morning, sunshine."

"Not yet," she pleaded. She heard giggles from the doorway. Ruby and Luke were with him apparently.

Rupert walked away and shut the door on the teenagers. Then he walked to her closet and removed the outfit she had already selected for the day from the hook on the back of the door. He picked up the shoes to go with it and set them on the floor next to her bed after laying the outfit on the bed beside her. Then he gently moved her into a sitting position. "Sorry, sweetheart. It's time to get up. You've got a lot to do today."

"But my bed is so comfortable," she replied with a slight pout on her lips. He chuckled and kissed her forehead lovingly. "All right, all right. But I will not like it one bit." She rose, and he helped her into her dressing gown. She went into the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face while he went to show Luke and Mina where to wait. He started the shower for her, got her a towel, and made sure her shampoo and conditioner were on separate shelves so she wouldn't get them mixed up. He didn't have to but he loved giving her extra attention whenever he could.

Mina finished her shower and got out to dry off. She exited the bathroom to get dressed and Ruby stood up from the edge of the bed. "Can I talk to you, Mina? Girl to girl?"

"All right then," she said with a sigh. She picked up her outfit by the hanger and went behind her privacy shade to change. "Is there something wrong, Ruby?"

"Well, um, yeah. Luke's been acting kind of weird. I think he knows how I feel about him. Is there…Do you know how I can fix it? Make him forget the whole thing?" Ruby blurted out in a nervous rush. She looked around Mina's gorgeous room full of antique furniture and dark blues and vivid reds and immediately thought, _This room should belong to a friggin' princess!_

"Well, I think your first step should be to ask him what's wrong. You will end up with nothing but a mess if you only have your assumption that he knows your true feelings," Mina said after a moment of thought. She pulled on her red dress over her black pantyhose then pulled on her black gloves and red shoes. She then pulled on her black satin belt and came out from behind the shade. "Then, if he does know, make it clear what you want."

"What if I don't know what I want?" Ruby stood up and walked over to where Mina sat at her vanity, ready to begin applying her make up. She picked up the eyeliner on the vanity and knelt down to apply it to Mina's eyes for her. Mina sat still and allowed Ruby to do this even though she had learned how to apply her makeup on her own a long time ago.

"Then you need to figure it out. Or ask him what he wants and take it from there. You may not get the answers you want or expect, Ruby, but you'll have to deal with what you get."

Ruby nodded and finished applying Mina's makeup for her then left the room. Mina turned on her stool to face the mirror and picked up her hairbrush. Before she could begin though, another person entered the room. Rupert took her hairbrush gently and began to help her style her hair. He bent down once it was dried with subtle curls to frame her face and pins to keep it out of her eyes, just the way she liked it. He took hold of a lock of the brown hair he loved so much and brought it up to inhale the wonderful fragrance of her shampoo. Wild violets and pomegranate, the bottle said. He loved the smell of it. "You look lovely, Mina."

She smiled and stood. "Thank you, Rupert. Now, I believe you needed me for something?"

"Yes, I did. Just a little research. We can't find something in the Stacks." She smiled and nodded, taking his arm as he led her from her bedroom to the foyer. There he helped her into her coat and put her scarf and hat on her. "It's cold out, Mina. Don't argue."

"All right," she said quietly. Ruby and Luke were outside by Rupert's car and Rupert made them get in the backseat before helping Mina into the passenger seat caringly.

He buckled her in since she wasn't familiar with this car and whispered into her ear so no one would hear but her, "You are the most beautiful thing this car has ever seen, Mina. I'm thinking of getting a new car, just so I'll be worthy of having you in my passenger seat."

She laughed at his flattery and kissed his cheek to show her appreciation. "You wouldn't be you without your car, darling. Don't you dare get rid of it."

"You got it, sweetie." He shut the door and went around to the driver's side with a grin. He was happy again. And not just at that moment but every moment he was with Mina. He tried not to be because he felt like he was betraying Maggie by loving Mina and being so damn happy just to be with her but he couldn't help it. Tibbs wasn't gone and Mina had always assumed he wouldn't be happy until he was but the truth was, he couldn't tell her how he felt until Tibbs was dead. Until he was certain that Maggie could rest in peace. That was what was making him drink and be miserable. Not being able to tell her how he felt. Having to hide his feelings every day. Wanting to kill Tibbs so badly just to help Maggie be at peace so he could confess to Mina. It was a horrible reason to want revenge for your dead wife. He was a horrible person.

Mina reached over and changed the radio station and he didn't snap at her as he would if Ruby or Luke changed the channel. She only changed it to another American radio station anyhow. "Rupert, I'm getting you one of those satellite radios for your birthday. You can barely hear the music under this static."

"You could if he listened to anything normal," Ruby spoke up. Luke nodded his agreement then slid over and put his arm around her shoulders. Her eyes nearly bulged out of the sockets. He had put his arms around her shoulders before but he was nuzzling his face into her neck as well this time and it was not in any way friendly. It was so beyond friendly, it was scary.

"You okay?" he breathed. She felt her face heat as a blush spread all the way to her ears and nodded a little too quickly. "Your hair smells fantastic. New soap?"

"No," she choked out. Suddenly, Rupert was reaching behind and pulling Luke away from her by the ear. Luckily, they were at a light so it was somewhat less dangerous. She was slightly disappointed but still slightly relieved. She wasn't sure how to react to Luke's actions.

"No groping in my car," Rupert said firmly. "Can you believe him, Mina? Taking advantage of the poor little girl in the back of my car."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Mina said, shaking her head sadly as she played along with Rupert's teasing. "Luke, I expected better from you. How can you behave so rudely?"

"Very funny," Luke said grumpily, moving right back to Ruby and putting his arms around her waist. He kept his nose out of her hair this time, to her intense relief, but he still held her so tightly she would never be able to escape his arms. "She doesn't mind. Right, Ruby?"

"Sure. It's not like you're grabbing my arse or anything," she said with a small, nervous chuckle. Luke nodded even though the flash in his eyes revealed he would love to grab her ass. And more, probably. They arrived outside the Stacks and Ruby asked for a moment alone with Luke while Rupert led Mina down to the library she loved so much. Once they were gone from earshot and he was next to her on the sidewalk, she asked, "Okay, what's up with you? You've been acting odd all week."

"What do you mean?" he replied casually. He kind of hoped she wouldn't see the way he was undressing her with his eyes. It would make this conversation rather difficult if she was angry.

"You're undressing me!" she said in shock. Next thing she knew, she was on the hood of Rupert's car in broad daylight with Luke's lips devouring her own while his hands explored over her clothing. Finally, they had to break for air though and she stared at him with wide eyes. "You…You kissed me!"

"Yeah," he panted. "God, you taste good." And he was back for more, licking the cherry flavored lip-gloss from her lips as if it was going to make him live forever. "Ruby. Ruby, I know how you feel."

"Tell me how _you_ feel," she demanded, breaking away from his kiss again.

"Now? Can't it wait? Can't we talk later?" he pleaded, rubbing her thighs tenderly. She resisted the urge to moan and grabbed his hands to make him behave with a firm look. With a sigh, he nodded. "Fine. I love you too, Ruby. Now, can I have my hands back? I was a little busy, you know."

"Yeah, you were scarring little children," she said with a laugh. "Luke, we're in broad daylight. We should not be doing this. And we've got to get some things straight also. I can't have a fling with you, okay? I really love you. It's not lust, okay? I need a relationship here."

"You've got it. If you can handle it. I know that being with a smiter is dangerous but Rupert said that since you know what's going on and everything, you should be okay," he said, rubbing her arms instead of her thighs. "Are you sure you want this?"

"Duh," she said with a laugh. "Luke, you're a pain in the arse but I want you. I can handle it and I trust you to keep me safe. Plus, you know, I can handle myself a bit." He chuckled and pulled her off the hood of the car. "You can apologize for molesting me now."

"Never gonna happen. It was too much fun." She laughed and put her arm around him as they headed towards the Stacks. He leaned down just outside the door and whispered, "And I fully intend to do it again tonight. That and more," before jogging down the stairs and leaving her gawking at him in the doorway.

"I take it your little chat went well," Rupert said as he reached up to retrieve a book for Mina. She thanked him and took the book.

"Yep," Luke said casually. He began to look through the books on the table and Ruby reluctantly joined him. He found it very amusing how she stayed out of arms reach though. Also, a little annoying. He looked at Rupert and mouthed, "How do you handle this?"

Rupert mouthed back, "Suck it up," cruelly. What was he complaining about? He was allowed to kiss Ruby. So what if he had to go _a few minutes_ without her in his arms? Rupert was _never_ allowed to kiss Mina.

Mina patted Ruby's arm as she passed her and asked Rupert, "What time is it?"

"It's all right, Mina. You have several hours before your CD signing. I'll make sure you get there in time." She nodded and thanked him softly before beginning to read from the book. He kissed her in thanks. She had found it. Her cheeks heated softly at his praise when he said, "Mina Harker, you are brilliant, you know that?" and she couldn't believe it when he kissed her cheek for something so small.

"All right. Luke, Ruby, keep looking for more references to these mariner things. I'm going to go ahead and start driving Mina to her signing." He put her jacket back on her along with her hat and scarf then led her out quickly.

"Rupert, my signing is only thirty minutes away," she pointed out once they were inside his car.

"I know. I thought we could get some breakfast." She laughed and nodded her understanding. He could be so mean to those children sometimes. "They won't get anything done anyway."

"True enough. Ah, to be young and in love. It must be fabulous to be allowed to be so open with your emotions." She reached over for his hand and he gave her the one that wasn't on the wheel. "I wish we had that privilege. But we have to be guarded, don't we?"

"Yes, I suppose so," he replied cautiously.

"Even if we loved someone, we could never tell them because they could get hurt. Or we could," she said quietly. "We could loose the only people that care for us in this life. The only ones we have."

"Yeah," he replied quietly, looking at her out of the corner of his eye. "Or we could finally be happy. We could end up with that fairytale happy ending."

"Key word being fairytale."

"You're a vampire, Mina. I pretty much believe everything is possible by now." Galvin's heart was pounding against his rip cage and he was more nervous than he had ever been in his life. He wanted to blurt out his feelings but he had to find out where this conversation was going first.

Mina laughed slightly and said, "I guess that's true. Everything is possible. But heartache is a pain worse than death, Rupert. Is it worth it?"

"Depends on who you're with," he replied, turning his head to look at her. She kissed his hand and smiled softly. "Mina, I –"

He didn't get to finish his sentence because right as they drove passed an alleyway; the car was slammed into by something large and gray and sent flying inside the alley. Mina screamed and Rupert sucked in a breath of air in surprise and fear. As the car flew through the air, he grabbed the back of Mina's neck and pushed her down, ducking his own head at the same time. The car flipped twice before stopping upside down, half inside the alley, half outside on the sidewalk.

Rupert dragged his eyes open a few minutes later and the first thing he heard were the voices of frightened and concerned onlookers. A second later, he felt a sharp pain in his head and his legs felt bruised. He looked over at Mina fearfully. She was unconscious; a small gash on her forehead, and her hair was standing straight up. No, wait. Rupert looked around and realized their actual situation after a moment of thought. They were upside down. He reached over and unbuckled his seatbelt carefully before dislodging his legs form the steering column and kicking off the door. Two men came forward to help him out then he rushed around to Mina's side and shoved the door open.

Mina's brown eyes slowly opened and she reached toward the sound of Rupert breathing hard. He kissed her palm and she relaxed slightly. He was okay. "My shoulder," she whispered. He nodded even though she couldn't see him and she felt tears stinging her eyes. "Rupert, what's going on?"

"Shh. I need you to just cooperate with me, all right, Mina? Put your arm on my shoulder. There you go," Rupert said gently. She sniffled as she held on to his shoulder and he reached over to hit the release on her seatbelt before catching her as she started to fall and pulling her from the wrecked car. Once safely out of the broken glass and pieces of metal, Rupert sat down with Mina in his lap and stroked the hair from her face. "You okay, sweetheart?"

"Yes," she whispered. He caressed her cheek as he looked around for what had hit them. It had vanished but when he peered at his door, he saw some nasty red slime coating it. "What is that god-awful smell?"

"Only you would notice that," he muttered into her hair. He kissed her forehead and looked toward the sound of sirens. "I don't think it was another car that hit us, baby."

"A half-life?" she gasped, wrapping her arms around his neck as he rose to his feet with her in his arms. An ambulance pulled over and Rupert carried her to the stretcher that was removed. After being thoroughly checked out by the EMTs and questioned by the police, Rupert and Mina were given a ride back to Mina's home and told not to operate heavy machinery for the rest of the day.

Mina walked up the staircase with Rupert right behind her and collapsed on her bed. "Did you get a good look at it?"

"No," Rupert replied. He sat on the hardwood floor by her feet and slid off her shoes gently. She smiled as he rubbed her feet lovingly and kissed her ankle. Then he stood and left her, to her immense disappointment. She heard the taps in her bathroom being turned on and smelled her favorite violet scented bubble bath and all her candles as they were lit. He came back and leaned over her on the bed. She was lying out with her head on the pillow and looked exhausted. "Ready for a nice, relaxing bath, sweetheart?"

"I couldn't lift my arms to undress if I tried, Rupert. Help me?" she asked sweetly. He nodded and kissed her cheek before moving down next to her feet. She felt him push up her dress and touch the hem of her pantyhose. She lifted her hips lazily and he slid off the garment slowly. She closed with a small smile on her lips. It felt wonderful to have Rupert pampering her in such a manner. He was so lovingly and she had never imagined she would have his hands on her hips under her dress. She nearly leapt out of her skin when his lips touched the skin just above the hem of her panties below her bellybutton and he chuckled at her reaction. "Yes, yes. Very funny. If you intend to 'turn me on', Rupert, you had better intend to satisfy the urges you create."

"You're turned on by that? What's this make you feel?" he asked before spreading her perfect thighs and placing a kiss on top of her most sensitive lips over the black lace of her panties. Mina moaned and reached down to run her fingers through his hair lovingly. "Mm. Interesting."

"Don't tease me, Rupert. It's cruel." He chuckled and moved up to kiss her forehead gently. Then he reached around and slid the zipper on the back of her dress down very slowly.

"You're very beautiful, Mina. Have I ever told you that?" he whispered as he slowly removed the dress from her body. He felt like he was high on some glorious drug. He was removing Mina's clothing. Making Mina actually want him. He was about to see her naked. Never in his wildest dreams would he have imagined anything like this.

Mina blushed slightly as he finished removing her clothing so all she was left in was her bra and panties. She felt him begin to tremble with desire and her heart would have raced, had it still been beating. She reached up and pulled him to her so their lips finally touched. "Rupert," she whispered. "What were you about to tell me before the wreck?"

"I love you, Mina Harker," he whispered before kissing her firmly. Mina moaned and returned the kiss passionately.

"Oh, Rupert," she sighed when they broke apart for much needed air. "I love you too." He scooped her into his arms suddenly and she gasped as she felt herself leave the bed. Her feet touched cold tile a moment later and she felt him remove her bra then her panties. Then she was being lowered into her warm bath water. "Do I have to take a bath now, darling? I'd much rather make love with you."

"Who says we can't do both?" he said with a sly grin. She heard his clothing being removed and felt a new wetness between her legs. Next thing she knew, Rupert was sitting behind her with his arms around her waist lovingly and his lips on her shoulder.

"Darling, you are an absolute sin," she told him with a smile. She reached behind herself and rubbed the hardened manhood she found. He groaned in pleasure and she smiled even more than before. "My, my. Aren't we eager?"

"Mina, didn't you say teasing was cruel?"

"Only when you do it," she countered with a small laugh.

He chuckled with her then whispered, "You'll pay for this cruelty, love. I'll show you just how sinful I can be, Mina. Just say the word."

"Go on then. Show me."

**Finished! Sorry it sucks but I had this damn thing stuck in my head for so long, I had to get it out. I know I'm probably the only one still writing Demons stories so no one really reads them but thank you if you did read this. Of course, if you're at this message that probably means you did read this so…Oh, never mind! Thanks for reading! Reviews are more than welcome!**


End file.
